Former Sheffield gambling addict was in £15,000 of debt by 22 - now he helps others

Adam Wood, aged 24 and from Chapeltown, gambled sporadically for several years, but after a successful day at the races he began to bet more and more, until he was spending his month’s wages in days, and in debt to loan companies.

In March 2020, Adam made his last bet, and in the time since he has taken to social media to record his journey as he quit gambling and paid off his debts.

It was at the Cheltenham races several years ago that Adam’s gambling began to spiral and he began to notice signs that he was becoming addicted.

Adam said: “At the time Cheltenham was amazing, but looking back it was probably the worst thing for me. I took £1,000 with me and won about £10,000. I had lost that within weeks, I kept chasing the streaks.

"It made me more aggressive. I was so oblivious and quite selfish. I was losing stupid amounts of money in a really short time. I had £9,000 in savings which I lost in a couple of weeks. I amassed £15,000 in debts. I was so ashamed and embarrassed, I didn’t tell my parents.

"In March 2020 I was getting a lot of emails and texts from debt collectors and bailiffs, they were telling me if I didn’t pay £3,000 by next week there would be a knock at the door of my family home. That wasn’t an option for me.”

It was at that point that Adam knew he had to come clean about his gambling. When he told his parents, they were concerned but supportive.

Adam stopped betting and threw himself into different activities, such as keeping fit and reading, and he gradually began to pay down his debts.

Adam said: “Last October I was finally debt free. My mum and dad stepped in and helped but I was adamant that I wanted to pay the majority off myself. It was a long process. But I feel a sense of freedom now, I can do things when I get paid, I can put money aside for my future.”

Since stopping gambling, Adam has used Twitter (@Adam_TFSID) like a blog to record his progress, and says hundreds of people struggling with gambling have reached out to him.

He also visited his old school, Ecclesfield Secondary School, where he spoke to years 8s about his experiences.

Adam added: “When I was at school we had talks about drugs and alcohol, which is important, but I never got anything about gambling. When I went back to the school they were really supportive. It went really well and the staff and students asked really good questions.

“I am hopefully going to go back and speak to the year 9s, 10s, and 11s. Some year 11s might be gambling themselves so it could be a deeper conversation. Maybe if I had had that at 15, I could have referred back to it when I started to see the signs as an adult.”

Adam said that he was supported by GamCare, a charity which provides online information support and advice to gamblers. You can find the GamCare website here.